Perforating and closing device



Dec. 5, 1950 P. MONNETT 2,532,509

PERFORATING AND CLOSING DEVICE Filed June 15, 1948 Fl ZZZ- INVENTOR.

Phi/hp Man/18H Patented Dec. 5, 1950 ATENT OFFICE PERFORATING ANDCLOSING DEVICE Phillip Monnett, Toledo, Ohio, assignor to Meco, Inc.,Napoleon, Ohio, a corporation of Ohio Application June 15, 1948, SerialNo. 33,117

1 Claim.

This invention relates to devices for perforating the tops of containersfor liquids such a condensed milk and fruit juices which usually arepackaged in cans and often are poured from the cans as used, the unusedportions being left in the cans for storage.

When a can of condensed milk, for example, is opened it is customary topuncture two holes in the top. One of the hole is punctured adjacent therim to act as a pouring spout and another hole is punctured atapproximately the opposite side of the top to act as an air vent. Theseholes often are made with tools such as ice picks or can openers or thepoints of heavy knives, none of which are designed for the job.

When a can of condensed milk .is left, even under refrigeratedconditions, with a pair of holes so perforated in its top, the smallresidue of milk which clings to the edges of the pouring hole or spillsover onto the top of the can often sours or further evaporates so that ayellowish, fatty residue is left on the can around the pouring opening.This residue is unappetizing in appearance and is unsanitary and it mayoften, in fact, form across the pouring hole, plugging it.

The principal object of this invention is to provide a small neat devicethrough the use of which two neatly placed, sufllciently sizableorifices can be punctured in the top of a liquid containing can with onesimple motion and which device can then be reinserted into the hole soperforated to serve as a closure, thus to prevent air from reachin thecontents of the can or those portions of the substance which cling totheinner edges of the pouring orifice.

It is another object of this invention to provide a perforating andclosing device for liquid containing cans which is inexpensive andsimple to manufacture, easy to use and neat in appearance.

It is another object of thi invention to provide a device for closingthe holes which were perforated with the device in order to permitliquid to be poured from the can, which is so designed that air ispermitted to reach the top surface of the can surrounding the holesthereby to dry up any residue but is prevented from entering the can byvirtue of the fact that the holes are sealed.

In the drawings:

Figure I i a view in perspective of a perforating and closing deviceembodying the invention.

Figure II is a bottom view of the device shown in Figure I.

Figure III is an isometric view of a can of the type in which condensedmilk or other liquids are packaged showing the location of the two holesperforated through the use of a device embodying the instant invention.

Figure IV is a vertical sectional view of the can shown in Figure IIIand illustrating how a device embodying the invention is replaced toclose the perforations formed in the top of the can by the deviceitself.

A device embodying the invention comprise a unitary body I whichpreferably is molded in a single molding from a plastic material suchas, for example, urea-formaldehyde or melamine-formaldehyde which arenon-toxic and practically impervious to food acids. The body I has acentrally located ear-like handle 2 by means of which the device isgrasped in the fingers and a pair of longitudinally extending arms 3 aswell as a pair of laterally extending balancing arms 4. In the undersideof each of the arms 3 there is a vertical bore into which is forced ashort sharp piercing point or punch 5. It is the punches 5 whichperforate the holes in the lid of a can to be opened and which alsoserve to seal the holes after they have been perforated. The upper endsof the punches 5, as seen in Figure IV, may be serrated or roughened sothat when they are molded or inserted in the ends of the arms 3 theserrations or rugations tend to restrict the punches 5 against eitherrotary or longitudinal movement in the body I.

The interior of the handle portion 2 may be hollow, as shown in FigureII, in order to save weight and material, or it may be made solid. Whileit has been found that a device embodying this invention can be mosteconomically and efficiently constructed from a plastic material, itmust be remembered that plastics are but substitutes for naturalmaterials and a device identical with that shown in the drawings easilycould be made from metal, Wood or other substance.

In Figure III there is shown a can 6 which has a flat disc-like top Isealed to a sheet of metal forming a, cylindrical body 8 of the can. Thetop I is sealed to the body 8 by means of an annular rim 9, the twopieces of metal being crimped together. Because the edges of the disc Iand cylinder 8 must be overlapped in order to crimp together, the rim 9is raised some little distance above the horizontal level of the top 1.In Figure III there can be seen two perforations It and II either ofwhich may be used as a pouring spout, the other serving as an air vent.

In Figure IV a device embodying the invention is shown in position on acan sealing the apertures formed in the top of the can. In Figure IV itcan be seen that the punches 5 fit back into the apertures l and IIwhich originally were formed as the punches were forced through the lid1 of the can. On the underside of each of the lateral arms 4 there isformed a button l2 which extends beneath the lower surface of the body Ia distance approximately equal to the vertical thickness of the rim 9.The two buttons l2 act as lateral supports for the bode I so that whenthe punches 5 are reinserted in the hoies formed in the lid '1 thedevice does not have a tendency to rock back and forth and work its wayoff the top of the can but remains stable and lies fla't'o'n the can.

The simplicity of the device, consisting, as it does, of merely aunitary body and two perforating punches, results in an extremely low"manufacturing cost. It also facilitates the high-speed production ofthe devices so that they can besold but for a few cents. The design andorganization of the parts of the device from which the advantages inmanufacture and use accrue are set forth in the subjoined claim.

Having described the ii'1'veiition,"- I claim:

A combined "perforating and closing "device longitudinally extendingarms and shorter laiter- *a'ily extending arms, all of said arms havinga substantially planar lower surface free of dirt retaining crevices, aperforating punch mounted in the lower side of each of saidlongitudinally extending arms and extending downwardly therefrom, saidbody having a maximum dimension through said longitudinally extendingarms slightly greater than the diameter of the top of a commonly usedcondensed milk can and a dimension through said laterally extending armsless than such diameter, a centrallylo'c'ated, upwardly extending,manually graspable handle portion on said body, and downwardly extendingiprotubera'nces =on'the undersides of said laterally extending arms,said protuberances being of a length "substantially equal to the heightof the rimsform'ed 'onsuc'h cans.

PHILLIP MONNETT.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file ofthis patent:

UNITED -S IA IES -PA'I'E-N IS

